INTERACTIONS IN SOLUTION BETWEEN A HYDROPHOBIC POLYMER AND VARIOUS KINDS OF SURFACTANTS

Interactions in solution between a hydrophobic polymer and surfactants were studied by viscometry, light scattering and conductimetry measur ements. One polymer, poly(2-ethyl hexyl methacrylate) (P2EHMA), five s urfactants, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), hexadecyl trimethylammonium bromide (HTAB), hexadecyl pyridinium chloride (HPCl), and ethoxylated nonyl phenol containing 10 or 25 segments of ethylene oxide (NP10 or N P25), and one solvent mixture, THF/6 vol% H2O were used in this work. For the P2EHMA/surfactant mixtures in THF/6 vol% H2O, the viscosity ve rsus surfactant concentration curves are similar in shape for all surf actants. They show a minimum at low surfactant concentration followed at higher concentration by a maximum and a plateau. An interpretation of these curve shapes is proposed. The relevance of these findings to the problem of the polymer/surfactant interactions in latexes and late x films is also discussed.